RJ Concludes its Short and Medium Range Fleet Modernization Plan
Monday, 23 March 2009
Amman, Last week a new Airbus A319, named Ajloun, one of the main cities in northern Jordan, joined the RJ fleet. It has been colored with the oneworld alliance livery on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of establishing the alliance, of which RJ is part since April 1, 2007.

RJ president/CEO Samer Majali said that by introducing this aircraft the airline concluded its short- and medium-haul fleet modernization program launched in 2004. According to the strategic plan, nineteen newly-manufactured aircraft continued joining the fleet starting 2006.

He pointed out that the new aircraft is the fourth Airbus A319 that joins the fleet, and the second that provides mobile OnAir services, enabling RJ passengers to stay connected while in flight, using mobile phones to make and receive calls, exchange text and multimedia messages. The service also allows passengers to send e-mails and access the Internet through smartphones or any other mobile phone equipped with the GPRS service.

The aircraft will fly with the oneworld livery colours until February 2010, he said. This move is part of the initiatives announced in Madrid last February to mark oneworld’s 10th birthday, among which is a standard oneworld livery that all of its member airlines will adopt on a proportion of their fleets, as a symbol of their renewed commitment to the alliance. 

Majali added that "Ajloun" is dedicated to serve the medium-range destinations in Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and the Indian Subcontinent.

He said that the company introduced the first aircraft equipped with mobile inflight passenger communications services in February this year. By the end of the year, the company will generalise the service on all the Airbus 320 fleet, which includes 12 aircraft.

The president expressed his satisfaction with completing the strategic plan that included introducing modern aircraft, four of which are Airbus A321s, four Airbus A320s, four Airbus A319s, five Embraer 195s and two Embraer 175s.

He said that the airline designated names of Jordanian cities on its new aircraft as a part of its mission of promoting Jordan to the world.

Majali mentioned that the company is still studying and comparing between several alternatives to modernize its long-range fleet, in light of last year's announcement that Boeing delayed delivering the first Boeing 787 Dreamliner scheduled to join the fleet in 2010. In 2006 the airline placed its order to introduce about 11 Boeing 787s under the airline's long-haul fleet modernization program.  

The company's strategy for 2009, he stressed, involves modernizing the Airbus A340s currently servicing the long-range destinations, by synchronizing them with the  distinguished amenities offered passengers onboard the other new aircraft.

Majali pointed out that last year RJ modernized three of its Airbus A310 aircraft that serve the long- and medium-range destinations at a cost of JD10 million. The renovation comprised full modernization of all the aircraft parts, interiors, entertainment systems and the engines.

The Royal Jordanian fleet now consists of 30 aircraft operating to 55 direct destinations and additional 700 destinations served by RJ’s partners in the oneworld airline alliance.

Source: Press Release (Royal Jordanian)

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